


Strength

by redledgers



Series: Next Generation [1]
Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, OF, Post Movie, Unplanned Pregnancy, basically fluff, lots - Freeform, nice fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-25
Updated: 2013-01-25
Packaged: 2017-11-26 21:22:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 5,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/654537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redledgers/pseuds/redledgers
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the battle of New York, Clint and Natasha continue their jobs as spies. Until their lives change after one particular mission, and nothing is ever the same.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This started as a fun fic, emailed back and forth with a friend of mine. It turned into a whole universe, with subsequent stories. The authors alternate between parts, with me taking Clint's point of view, and her taking Natasha's.

Natasha was out of breath and her arms ached. She could feel the trickle of blood from the cut on her cheek - it very nearly dripped into her mouth. She was outnumbered - for the moment. Taking advantage of the break in the fight, she dove behind an abandoned car and checked her gun's magazine. Half-full. She could survive on that for a bit longer.

 "Where the hell are you, Barton?" she said quietly, but out loud, as if he could hear her wherever he was. "I need you."

 "Come out, little spider!" came a voice a few feet to her left. "We don't like insects on our turf!"

 She steeled her mind, cocked her gun. As she jumped to her feet, pistol pointed, she saw a blur of purple and silver appear behind her attacker's gang. Before she could blink, Clint had his bow out and an arrow aimed at one of the men.

 "Leave her alone or you'll regret it," he growled.

Natasha smiled slightly. She wasn't outnumbered anymore.

 

*******

 

Clint smiled when he saw her. "Found you," he mouthed, winking.

 Natasha rolled her eyes and shot the second man. "You never lost me."

 He slung his bow over his shoulder and came up beside her, wiping the blood off her cheek. "I might have."

 "Barton, I can take care of myself." But she smiled and put the gun back in her holster. "Come on, let's get out of here."

They went separate ways, sticking to the shadows, and eventually met in their shared hotel room. The sun had begun to set and it cast dark shadows across the room. Clint turned on the light. Natasha had gotten there before him and was already curled on the bed, asleep. She hadn't woken when he opened the door meaning she was really tired or just knew it was him. He showered quickly and joined her.


	2. Chapter 2

It was after midnight when Natasha woke up, her body aching, the gash on her face stinging. She shifted in the bed, suddenly feeling the weight over her waist - Clint's arm wrapped loosely around her hips, his fingers tangled in her t-shirt. She sighed, her fingertips tracing lightly over the veins in his forearm.

She shouldn't have had to rely on him back there. Three men usually wouldn't be a problem for her. She'd fought more with less. But today - today was strange. She'd lost her touch.

 _You're in love, Natalia,_  her mind taunted.  _You needed him because you need him._

"No," she whispered, forgetting herself for a moment.

Clint stirred beside her. "Mmm... Tash? You okay?"

She closed her eyes briefly, then rolled over to face him. "I'm fine, мой драгоценный ястреб," she said softly. She brushed her lips over his cheek. "Go back to sleep."

"You sleep," he said, a hint of playfulness in his sleep-thick voice.

"I will, I promise." Her kiss was firmer this time, and even in his half-consciousness, he returned it. "Goodnight, Clint."

"'Night, Tash." He wrapped her closer, fitting her under his chin. Normally, she would have fought, given herself space.

Normally.

 

***

 

With Natasha, there wasn't normality.  There was because they understood each other and they had the same morals, but there wasn't because she was different around him. He stayed awake for a while longer, listening to her steady breathing and enjoying this morsel of trust she had given him. He lived every day like it would be their last, because in their line of work, they never knew.

SHIELD would be picking them up in the afternoon and they'd be going back home. But for now they had a moment of peace that wouldn't be interrupted by anyone. Natasha shifted in his grip and tucked her face against his chest. He smiled and closed his eyes.  _You love her,_  his mind whispered.  _Don't lose her._

  _I won't,_  he replied. 

It was raining when he woke up again. He brushed his lips against Nat's forehead. "Time to wake up, паук," he said.

"What time 'r we leavin'?" she asked sleepily. 

He grinned. He was the only one who got to see her like this, guard down and half in dreamland. Or nightmare land. With her, he could never tell. "1300."

"What time 's it now?"

He regretted having to let go of her to reach his watch. "11:30."

She nestled closer. “Wake me up at 12:15”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *мой драгоценный ястреб = my precious hawk
> 
> *паук = spider


	3. Chapter 3

Tasha wasn't really interested in sleep, though. Even after she closed her eyes, her fingers kept moving, making smaller and then larger and larger circles over his chest, his ribs, his belly. Her lips brushed over his jaw, down the vein in his neck, along the hollow of his throat. She felt him tense, his arm loosening around her, his face turning to hers. She lifted her head, their lips meeting halfway, her body slipping on top of his.

They were nearly gone when she stopped, wincing and pulling back from Clint's touch. "Tash?" he asked heavily, his voice nervous. "What's wrong?"

"I...don't know." She sat back on her heels, perching on the tops of his thighs, her fingers gingerly pressing on her back near her kidney. She lifted her shirt slightly, turning to the left. "Is there something there?"

He rested a hand under the place where her fingers pointed, peering at her in the gloom. "You're bruised. Badly." He sat up a little, holding her steady, to get a better look. "Tash, this doesn't look good."

She shook her head. "I probably just banged it. It'll heal."

"I'm not sure about that," he replied. "Can you at least let me take you to the med bay at base?"

"Clint..."

"It'd make me feel better. Even if it is just a bruise."

She looked down at him, hand still pressed tenderly to the spot below the bruise, his bright blue eyes wrinkled with concern. "Okay." She kissed him softly. "Я в порядке, хотя. Вы параноик."

"I know I am. But humor me."

She smiled. “Just this once.”

 

*******

 

He didn't like to see her hurt, and he knew she knew it. The fact she'd agreed to a trip to the med bay was a miracle. He cupped her cheek. "Let's get ready, yeah? The faster we get to the airport, the faster we get home."

She nodded.

He didn't bother asking about what had just happened. Natasha was like that, spontaneous. She didn't like long explanations.

"Я получаю душ первым," she said, slipping of the bed.

"I showered when I got back," he said.

She glared at him, then stuck out her tongue, and went into the small bathroom. Less than an hour later, they were at the airport, waiting for the SHIELD plane to land. "You're not leaving my sight until we get to the med bay," Clint reminded her. 

She wrinkled her nose, but agreed again. "Only the bruise," she said. 

He knew she was probably hurt somewhere else too, but he nodded. "I'll stay and make sure, alright?"

Her answer was drowned out by the roar of the plane landing, but he was pretty sure the sentence ended with "...и тогда вы получите его."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Я в порядке, хотя. Вы параноик. = I'm fine though. You're paranoid.
> 
> *Я получаю душ первым = I get the first shower
> 
> *и тогда вы получите его = and then you get it


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *дедушка = grandpa
> 
> *не делай этого со мной = Don't do this to me

It wasn't like Tasha to doze off after a full-night's sleep, especially on a moving vehicle. Yet here she was, carefully strapped into a padded seat, her head on Clint's shoulder, her eyes getting heavy. It was starting to unnerve her.

"Hey, don't you nod off on me, Romanoff."

She blinked up at him. "I don't know why I'm so sleepy."

"You did spend most of yesterday getting the shit kicked out of you," he replied, but she saw the fear in his eyes. She couldn't entertain the idea that the injury to her back was something worse than a simple bruise. "I'm pretty wiped, too, and I was only there a few minutes."

She sighed, groaning inwardly at the pain. "I must be getting old," she joked lightly.

"Don't say that," he grinned. "If you're getting old, you might as well call me grandpa."

"Fine, дедушка."

He brushed his lips over the top of her hair. "Stay awake with me, Tasha, just in case."

"Then keep me awake."

Clint's smile didn't falter. "Did I ever tell you about the time I held my first bow?"

 

*******

 

"It wasn't something I wanted to do but they told me it was the only thing I could do. But when I held it in my hand, I fell in love, you know?"

Natasha did know. But she kept it to herself. 

"When I ran away, I brought my bow with me. It was the only thing I had left." He went on to tell her a story she knew well, the story about how he came to SHIELD and found her. When he glanced at her again, her head was leaning back on the headrest and her eyes were closed. "Tasha?"

She whimpered.

"Tasha, come on, you have to keep your eyes open. Stay awake." He touched her shoulder. "Goddamn it Tasha, не делай этого со мной."


	5. Chapter 5

She groaned, the pain in her back and side even more excruciating now. She also realized it was getting hard to keep her eyes open, and that Clint's voice was faded and wobbly in her ears. "Clint..." she murmured. "I...I think it's bad..."

She felt him unhook her belt and gingerly lift her from her seat. Without opening her eyes, she knew he'd sat back down and rested her on his lap - she could feel his thighs beneath her and his arms around her stomach and shoulder. "C'mon, Tasha. Just a few more minutes."

Natasha shifted her body a bit, positioning the injury in between his careful arms. "'m trying..."

His breath was warm against her ear, his lips brushing the skin there so softly she wasn't sure she wasn't imagining it. "C'mon, моя любовь. We've been through worse. You're gonna be okay, but I really need you to stay awake."

She forced herself to blink her eyes open. "Пой со мной, ястреб."

"Sing what?"

"I don't care," she whispered. "Sing in...in English. I'll have to focus." She took a breath.

As Clint started to sing, she struggled to keep up. Stop it, Natalia. Worst case scenario, it's internal bleeding. You've survived worse. Pay attention and stay awake.

  
*******

He held her, watching her scrunch up her face as she tried to remember the words. "You're doing fine," he whispered. When they arrived, he pushed past everyone and brought her to the med bay, ignoring Fury's questions. "Чуть больше."

She nodded. 

There was staff already on hand to help her. He refused their orders to leave the room. He'd promised to stay with her. She was strong enough, she'd fight whatever this was.

"What happened?" Fury asked when he came out for some coffee.

"She got hurt. I don't know anything else. the doctors won't tell me."

"You still need a debrief," Fury reminded him. "When you want to."

"I'm not doing anything until Natasha's fine. Besides, she knows more about what happened than I do." Clint turned his attention back to the room. He heard Fury leave, and went back inside. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Пой со мной, ястреб = Sing for me, hawk.
> 
> *Чуть больше = A little more


	6. Chapter 6

Natasha looked up as Clint came back into her room. She was curled up on her side, injury protected from the pressure of her body weight. She was still so tired but could finally manage to keep her eyes open.

"So, are you going to tell me what the doctors said?" he asked gently, not meeting her eyes but instead studying the bag attached to the IV in her arm.

"I'll be fine."

"That's all they said?" He finally met her gaze and she was stunned to see anger in his eyes. "Natasha, I honestly thought you were dying in my arms up there! For fuck's sake, can't you just drop the act and tell me - me, of all people, who won't ever judge you for being hurt or scared - what the hell is going on?"

She watched him watching her, his face red and his eyes wet with tears. "I broke two ribs. They were pressing against my kidney and causing the bruise. The doctor's fixed me up. I just need a few days rest."

"Is that it?" he asked, his voice dark, but calmer now.

She closed her eyes. "No."

Clint sat on the end of her bed and pressed his hand to her cheek. "Tell me, Tasha."

She swallowed thickly. "The doctor... When he did the sonogram..." The tears she'd been struggling with started to fall, and she was horrified to feel the moisture on her cheeks. "I'm pregnant."

 

*******

He wanted to gather her up in his arms and hold her and pray for this to all go away but he didn't want to hurt her even more. She solved his problem, pulling the IV and climbing into his lap, pressing her face to his shoulder in an effort to stop the tears. She didn't want this. "How far along?" he whispered gently.

"About a month." She sniffed, sobs lessening. She hated feeling weak.

Clint brushed her red curls from her face. "I need you to get better, okay? And then you can tell me what you want to do." He kissed her forehead.

"Я не люблю это," she whimpered.

"Shhh. I don't either, but it's something we'll talk about later." 

She buried herself against him. "I want to go to my room."

He knew the doctors wanted her to stay and that they'd be out looking for him if he moved her. But he couldn't deny her request. He stood and she wrapped her legs around his waist and held on.  He managed to avoid other agents, and soon he was laying her on her own bed. "Do you want any painkillers?"

She shook her head and grabbed his hand. "Спасибо."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Я не люблю это = I don't like this
> 
> *Спасибо = Thank you


	7. Chapter 7

Natasha lay awake in her bed, listening to Clint's gentle snoring beside her.

"Natasha, I don't think you know this," Dr. Marshall had said, "but you're five weeks pregnant."

Five weeks. The anniversary of Loki's attempted takeover. The night Thor brought him home to Asgard, she and Clint had disappeared to a little hotel outside The City and talked. And kissed. And made love.

And sometime within that forty-eight hour frame, they'd created... Should she call it a baby yet? Natasha closed her eyes against the threat of tears. She didn't know anything about kids, or about being a mother. She didn't even have her own to look to for advice.

"Что я буду делать?" she whispered.

Clint shifted in the bed, nuzzling close and slipping an arm over her belly. "Sleep, Tash."

"I can't."

He pressed his lips to the side of her neck. "You can and you will. You'll think clearer when you've rested."

She traced a fingernail over his arm. "Okay, I'll try."

She could feel his smile against her skin. "I love you, Natasha."

She realized she was too frightened to return the sentiment.

 

*******

He was worried about her. He didn't know what she wanted. Heck, he didn't even know what he wanted. He remembered that night, it would be burned in his memory forever. But he didn't know if he wanted such a real reminder.

He didn't think to hard about her silence and instead spread his hand over where, maybe a few months from now, there would be a baby growing.

He realized he was scared shitless. He didn't know how to be a father. He could tell she was sleeping, lightly, but sleeping, but now he couldn't sleep. 

"Наталия?" he whispered.

"What now?" She turned to face him.

"Does anyone else know aside from Dr. Marshall?"

Natasha shrugged helplessly. She moved in close and tucked herself under his chin. "I don't know anything anymore."

Clint stroked her hair. "We'll figure it out, моя любовь. We always do." He wasn't sure if he sounded convincing or not.

He could feel her shaking and his shirt becoming wet as he finally managed to drift off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Что я буду делать = What will I do?
> 
> *Наталия = Natasha/Natalia


	8. Chapter 8

That was the last time Natasha saw Clint. She woke up a few hours later, still wrapped in his arms, and slipped out of her bed and out of the building.

She didn't look back.

_Seven months later..._

"Miss Romanoff, we weren't able to get an answer at the first number, but we were connected to a Mr. Fury," the nurse said. "He said he'd pass the news along as soon as he could."

"ебля," she hissed, breathing through yet another contraction. Seven minutes apart now. "T-thank you."

When the nurse left the room with a reassuring smile, Natasha's inner voice took over. This is your fault, Наталия. You chose to do this on your own. You're paying the price now.

Closing her eyes, she focused her energy on the little girl inside her. "Здравствуйте, Валя. Похоже, что это будет только ты и я. Мне очень жаль, ангел, но я обещаю, что сделаю все возможное, чтобы дать вам все, что вам нужно. Я просто ... Желаю вам знал вашего отца. Я никогда не говорил ему достаточно, но я любила его. Так много. И я знаю, он любит вас - или будет, если он не знал." She rubbed her hands over her belly in a circular motion, hoping to soothe the restless baby. "Oh, Clint."

The nurses were wheeling her bed to the delivery room forty minutes later when she swore she saw spiky blond hair and bright blue eyes behind the lobby doors.

  
*******

He was frantic. She'd disappeared without a trace. She wasn't answering her phone and even Fury didn't know where she was. "Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck fuck Natasha, what did you do now? 

He couldn't be sure of anything now. He went to all her safe houses but she hadn't been at any of them. He was desperate now, asking around, watching the news for anything that would indicate her presence anywhere. But wherever she was, she was laying low. What if she isn't keeping the baby? What if she lost it? What if... Clint's mind raced.

And then after over a half a year searching frantically, he was on the brink of a complete breakdown. Then Fury called him into his office. "We received a call a bit ago from a nurse in Connecticut. You might want to borrow Stark's jet and get there," he said. He handed Clint a piece of paper with the hospital's information on it. 

Clint didn't wait to be pushed. He took off down the hall and out to the small airport behind the headquarters. It's too early, he said to himself. She's got to be okay...she just has to be. Tony brought him to the closest airport and 45 minutes after he'd received the news from Fury, he was running through the halls of the hospital, praying Natasha was alright.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *ебля = fuck
> 
> *Здравствуйте, Валя. Похоже, что это будет только ты и я. Мне очень жаль, ангел, но я обещаю, что сделаю все возможное, чтобы дать вам все, что вам нужно. Я просто ... Желаю вам знал вашего отца. Я никогда не говорил ему достаточно, но я любила его. Так много. И я знаю, он любит вас - или будет, если он не знал = "Hi Val. It seems like it's just you and me, I'm sorry, Angel. I promise I'll do my best to give you everything you need. I wish you knew your father. I never said it enough, but I loved him. So much. And I know he loves you, or he would if he knew."


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Translations in the end notes

Valya Romanoff was six weeks early, but as healthy as could be. Natasha was amazed at the shock of blonde hair across her little daughter's head, at the strength in her tiny fingers when she grabbed her mother's index finger. "Oh, мой ангел, you are so beautiful."

"She is."

Natasha's head shot up, her eyes falling on Clint standing in the doorway. He was leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes narrowed. But Natasha knew him too well - he was simply playing at being angry. She could see the worry in the wrinkles around his mouth, in the furrow of his brow. "Clint..."

"Natasha, don't."

"But I..."

"No. Not...not now, anyway." He inched into the room and made his way to her bedside. "Did you... Did you choose a name?"

"V-Valya," she replied quietly. "It means 'strong'."

"Would you consider doing me a favor?"

She looked up into his soft, teary eyes. "Anything, Clint. Anything."

"Can her middle name be Edie? My...my mother's name was Edith, but everyone called her Edie." He reached out and put his hand over Natasha's where it rested on the side of Valya's head. "It's the only thing I want from you, Tash."

"Valya Edie Romanoff." She sniffled. "No, it doesn't work." Clint's hand fell away from hers. "I think it should be Valya Edie Barton."

Clint let the tears fall. "Oh, Tasha."

"Clint, I'm really sorry. You have to know I'm so, so sorry."

He sat down beside her and pressed his lips to her forehead. "You can apologize to me later." His voice was playful, but she heard the hurt behind it. "I'm just glad you called."

 

*******

His daughter was perfect. He hadn't been allowed in for the delivery, but he could hear Natasha's groans from the hallway. He could tell from when he saw her hold their little girl that she would be a protective mother, and he was slightly surprised when she offered the tiny bundle to him.

Valya smiled at him and reached toward him. He held her with one arm and let her pull on his finger. "How soon can you leave?" he asked Natasha.

She wiped the remaining tears off her cheeks. "I can go now, I think." A nurse came in and confirmed it. They left, and Natasha directed Clint to a safe house she had.

"I didn't know about this one," he said, turning into the driveway. "I looked for you in all of yours."

"You don't know about them all," she replied, smiling. Valya gurgled. "I think she's hungry."

"I'll let you two do that. I'm going to make you dinner." Clint helped her onto the sofa (to her indifference) then went to the kitchen to see what he could find.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *мой ангел = my angel


	10. Chapter 10

When Natasha woke, her blouse was buttoned, and she was covered by the black blanket Clint had given her once upon a time. She shook awake, startled that Valya wasn't in her arms, but as her vision cleared, she saw the baby cuddled on her father's chest in the oversized recliner across from her.

Clint's left hand rested on Valya's back, holding her in place just over his heart. His right hand held his cell phone, and he smiled slightly as he scrolled his thumb over the screen. "Clint," Natasha said softly, unable to keep her own smile down.

He looked up at her. "Hey, Tash."

She took the moment, the physical distance between them, and ran with it. "Clint, you have to know that I'm sorry." She took a deep breath. "I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what I wanted. My old instincts kicked in - I just ran. I left everything. I didn't even take my phone. I lay in bed for hours, days, I think, just...blank." She could feel the tears on her cheeks, tears she hadn't shed in years that seemed to come in buckets these last few days. "I shouldn't have done it. I should have stayed with you, or at least let you know I was okay. What I did, you shouldn't ever forgive me for. I don't know if I forgive myself."

He was quiet for a moment, just watching her. Finally, he put down his phone and held out his free arm. "Иди сюда, паук."

She was in his lap before she even realized it, curling close, burying her face in his neck. He kissed her forehead. "Natasha, I forgive you."

As she sat there, sniffling, wrapped in Clint's arm, their newborn daughter sleeping quietly under their now-linked fingers, Natasha just hoped she could forgive herself.

 

*******

 

She was small, so very small in his hands. He thought he would break her. Both she and Tasha had fallen asleep, so he left the plates on the table and went to pick up his sleeping daughter.  The flash of fear in Tasha's eyes when she woke up made him think he should have left Valya in her arms. But when she curled on his lap, he knew it was alright. "Мой паук, и мой маленький ангел," he whispered. 

Natasha looked up at him. "Как все изменилось," she replied. "Do you think we should teach her Russian?"

Clint kissed her. "I think we should if you want to use another language for us," he answered. "And I also think you should eat dinner."

She grinned, sliding off his lap and gently picking up Valya. "There's a crib in my room," she explained.

Clint nodded, having explored the house while she was asleep. He reached his arms out. "She can stay here," he said. "I've only just met her."

Natasha laughed, and set her down on his chest again. "I don't want her stealing all your attention," she whispered. "I'm still here."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Иди сюда, паук = Come on, spider
> 
> *Мой паук, и мой маленький ангел = My spider and my little angel
> 
> *Как все изменилось = How things have changed


	11. Chapter 11

"Yes," Clint replied gently, smile teasing the corners of his lips. "But you need to recover."

She responded the only way she could - she stuck her tongue out at him. "Fine, I'm going to go eat. You call me if she wakes up, yeah?"

He nodded, his gaze moving back to Valya. She rolled her eyes, her heart threatening to beat right out of her chest. When she got to the kitchen, the first thing she did was reach for a bottle of children's aspirin. She'd bought it once to fight a toothache - nothing worked better than letting one dissolve on the sore spot - and now she was thankful. She took two, knowing it was healthy even though she was breastfeeding Valya, and hoping it would dull the ache in her lower half.

Sitting down at the table, she eyed the meal Clint had whipped up. A couple of small turkey burgers, some frozen hash browns, and a small helping of leftover corn from one of her dinners earlier in the week. Clint was a whiz in the kitchen - something she'd learned on an undercover mission in Dublin - but she assumed her meager groceries, the things she'd purchased that were just enough to keep herself and the baby healthy, were a little difficult to work with.

She drowned the burgers and potatoes in ketchup, her guilty pleasure, and slowly ate, realizing that for the first time in months, things actually tasted good. The rational part of her brain told her it was the lack of pregnancy hormones, the ones that made even her favorite foods turn her stomach; but a nagging little voice in the back of her head told her it was because Clint was with her.

She found her mind wandering back to the living room. When she'd woken to see Clint and Valya on the chair, it had felt right. For a moment, she felt like a regular woman, with a boyfriend and a baby and a house in the suburbs. It was even easy to pretend that was all true, especially when she looked at her - their - daughter and saw the perfect blend of both of them in her face.

Maybe they could do that. Leave SHIELD, run away to the country, raise Valya together like a normal couple.

You've got to be kidding, Natasha, her inner voice replied. You could never give up being a spy.

But was she really willing to risk her life, to risk Clint's, now that a child was depending on them?

Natasha couldn't answer her own question.

 

*******

"What's up?" His voice startled her out of her reverie. 

She shook her head, walking over to the sofa, and stretched out on it. Clint noticed she winced and made a note to give her a massage later. She deserved it.

"Fury called while you were sleeping," he said.

She raised her head, indicating he should continue.

"He asked if you were okay and he told me we could take as long as we need. They're not going to bother us." He shifted Valya in his arms. "They're not mad at you either. I think Fury is secretly pleased there's a new addition to the family that doesn't have anger management problems or drinks too much."

Natasha smiled. "Can we put her in her crib?" she asked.

 "If we do that, you're getting pampered." He stood and handed their daughter over to his...well girlfriend wasn't the right word for Natasha. Come to think of it, none of the usual words fit what they had. She rose to meet him and cradled the baby against her chest, still in awe of how tiny she was. When they got to her room, she gently lay Valya in her crib and tucked the black blanket around her. When she turned she was wrapped in Clint's arms. "Мать моего ребенка" he whispered.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Мать моего ребенка = mother of my child


	12. Chapter 12

Natasha was more than willing to stay there in Clint's arms for the rest of the night. The exhaustion was setting in, and the pain in her lower body was coming back with a vengeance. She figured he could sense that, though, when he lifted her as easily as he'd carried Valya and moved across the room to her bed.

"Sleep, Tash. You need it just as badly as she does."

"So do you." She held out a hand as her eyelids threatened to close. "Please, Clint. Don't leave."

He bent close and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I'll come back, Tasha, I promise. I just have to get rid of your dinner dishes."

"Don't take long."

"I won't. Despite what you might fear, моя прекрасная паук, I won't ever leave you."

She feared there was a double meaning in his sentence, a jab at her disappearance. But his storm-blue eyes were soft, and he was smiling. "Я действительно люблю тебя, Клинт."

He kissed her again, this time gently, feather-light, on her lips. "Я знаю. I love you, too."

She was sound asleep when he came back to bed.

 

*******

 

He smiled when he returned, knowing Natasha would need whatever sleep she could get now. He would too, he knew that much. He stripped down to his underwear and climbed in beside her, pulling her gently to him, mindful of her soreness. He wanted to show her how much he loved her and make good on his promises but he knew that for now, he couldn't, that she needed to recover.

He realized he'd drifted off to sleep when a crying sound startled him awake. He stopped Natasha from moving and brought Valya to her. She smiled in thanks. "I guess this is our life now," she said sleepily when their daughter rooted for food.

Clint sat beside her and slipped an arm around her shoulder. "Do you mind?"

"Not as much as I thought I would." She turned to look at him with wide eyes. "Clint, you're going to have to promise me we're going to work together in this."

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I already told you we would, little spider."

She smiled at the nickname. "I think she's the little spider now." She gently bounced the baby in her arms.

"No, she's our little bird." He put her back in the crib when she seemed to be content and tired. "Tasha, she's  _ours._ Not just mine or yours."

Natasha just replied by tugging on his boxers and pulling him back onto the bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Я действительно люблю тебя, Клинт = I love you a lot, Clint
> 
> *Я знаю = I know


	13. Chapter 13

When Natasha woke up again, the sun was just starting to break through the trees. She didn't feel Clint's arms around her, so she rolled over to make sure he was still there.

He was. Clint lie on his back, one arm behind his head, the other draped carefully over Valya, who was dozing on her back near his heart. Natasha propped her head up on the palm of her hand and just watched the scene.

Valya looked a lot like Clint, with her light hair and blue eyes, but she had inherited Natasha's nose - freckles and all. Natasha's eyes trailed to Clint, and she smiled. He looked a little older than when she'd left, but it was the same face she'd seen that night in Abakan when he'd lowered his bow and let her live.

She'd owed him her life for years. Now, she owed him Valya's as well.

She realized she didn't mind that.

"Tash, you're daydreaming."

She blinked and saw father and daughter watching her intently. Both had matching smiles on their faces and she grinned.

"Теперь почему я должен мечтать, когда у меня совершенства здесь рядом со мной?" She scooted closer and curled under his free arm. "Good morning."

"'Morning to you, too."

 

*******

 

Clint grinned and set Valya between them, careful not to squish her. "Breakfast time?"

"Bath time first." Natasha winced as she sat up. "Then breakfast."

The next four months went by faster than Clint could believe. Valya loved being bounced on his knee and she'd coo at him and smile if he stopped. The doctors were amazed at how quickly she was learning things, but Clint and Natasha just smiled at each other. Nat had been cleared for sex after six weeks, but they hadn't had the time (to Clint's dismay) for anything.

She looked at him from across the room. "Do you want to go back?" she asked. "Maybe just for a visit?"

He stopped bouncing their daughter. "We can if you want to."

"I think Steve would like her." She got up and crossed the room, sitting on the arm of the recliner. She leaned over. "What do you think, ангел? Do you want to meet more superheros?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Теперь почему я должен мечтать, когда у меня совершенства здесь рядом со мной? = Why would I dream when I have a perfect thing right here?


	14. Chapter 14

The trip back to S.H.I.E.L.D. was interesting with a four-month-old. Valya was fidgety on the plane, bouncing around and whimpering whenever she was awake.

"Hush, воробышек. I know the plane hurts your ears, but we're almost there." Natasha cuddled Valya to her chest, running soothing fingers through her dirty-blonde curls.

Surprisingly, Coulson was the person to greet them when they stepped off the plane. Clint had told her that S.H.I.E.L.D's med bay had managed to save him, though he'd been in a coma for almost a year, and yet no one was  _too_  mad at Fury's lie because it meant Phil was alive. "Agent Romanoff, welcome back," he said, his dark eyes reflecting his smile. "And you as well, Agent Barton. I take it this is our newest member?" He gestured with a wink to Valya, who was curled shyly against Clint's shoulder.

"Valya Barton, meet Phil Coulson, the biggest hero you'll ever have the pleasure to know."

Natasha was sure she saw a blush cross Coulson's features. "She's adorable." Catching himself, he dropped his hand from her fingers and straightened up. "Come on in, Agents. There are quite a few people here who are excited to have you home."

Luckily, or perhaps  _not_ so luckily, their arrival hadn't been quiet or secretive, as the rest of the so-called Avengers were gathered in a small conference room towards the center of the complex. When Coulson swiped his ID card over the lock, the doors swung open and a chorus of, "Surprise!" filled the hallway.

Valya, ever her father's daughter, squealed in delight and clapped her hands.

 

*******

Valya took a liking to Steve almost immediately and also, to their amazement, Bruce. Natasha took a step toward him when he held her, still afraid of the surprises, but Clint touched her shoulder. "She'll be alright," he whispered. She didn't relax.

"She's so tiny," Thor said, peering at her as she sat in Banner's lap. "Are all humans this tiny at the beginning?"

"She's not  _that_ small," Clint protested.

"Yes she is," Tony said, setting his drink on the table. "She'll need a suit."

"She's not getting a suit," Natasha hissed. Pepper was beside her in an instant.

"She's perfectly fine, Natasha," she reassured her. "It's good to see you again."

They left for Clint's apartment when Valya started to fall asleep on the Avenger's laps. When they arrived, Natasha started unbuttoning her shirt. "I'm going to feed her before she falls asleep for the night." She sat on the sofa and he slipped behind her, holding her against him while Valya nursed.

"I have some ideas if you're not too tired," he whispered. "And if you promise to be quiet."

 


End file.
